QUICHI

With the summer holidays now kicking off sunbed wars are heating up and one man has been caught taking this to the extreme.

A video posted to TikTok earlier this month shows the man at the Holiday World Village in Benalmadena, Spain, taking up six sunbeds with his towels.

People can be seen dashing out behind him in the video, as they all race to nab the best spot.

The problem is so bad on the island of Majorca that authorities are planning to create an app for people to book sunbeds.

If plans are approved – sunbeds will have to be booked via an app at the resorts of Ciutat Jardí, Cala Estància, Can Pere Antoni, Cala Major and Playa de Palma, according to BILD.

The way in which the app will work is very similar to how people book seats on flights – so will show which sunbeds are still available.

But it will still be first come first served so people will have to be quick if they want to reserve a prime spot.

This will all come into force next year in 2025 if passed and video surveillance on beaches will help spot holidaymakers breaking the rules.

Until then, it is set to be another summer of people battling one another just so they can sit around and enjoy the sun.

The problem only seems to be getting worse as more tourists in Spain are being warned they could be fined if they try to reserve beach sunbeds.

The Spanish town of Calpe, in Alicante, will be handing out fines of €250 (£210) to people who reserve areas of the beach with towels, chairs and umbrellas before 9.30am.

It would also apply to belongings left unattended on the beach for more than three hours – as tourism industry leaders say they won’t tolerate ’empty but reserved’ loungers this summer.

The problem has also got so bad in parts of Greece that drones are even being deployed in parts to monitor tourists.

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Parts of Europe have entered the third week of a ‘hellish’ heatwave driven by a mass of hot air from the Sahara desert.

Temperatures as high as 44°C have hit southern and eastern parts of the continent, sparking wildfires across Greece, Portugal, Bulgaria – and now in Spain.

Tourists and residents have been urged to stay inside to escape the excessive heat in Turkey, Greece and Italy.

British families heading to Spain, Portugal and Morocco this week have now been warned to brace themselves for a heatwave with highs of up to 46C.

Spain’s health ministry issued alerts for large parts of the country as the mercury climbed above 40°C, telling citizens: ‘Protect yourself; hydrate yourself; refresh yourself, and take care of more vulnerable people.’

This is everything you need to know about Europe’s extreme weather.

Portugal

A new front of wildfires has opened in the Portuguese borough of Cascais, a popular holiday town just 20 miles west of Lisbon.

Temperatures have risen to 37°C, while high winds have helped the flames to spread.

Some residents are evacuating on their own initiative, Portugal Resident reported.

As many as 11 firefighters have been treated for smoke inhalation, exhaustion and minor injuries.

Spain

Spain has already been experienced extreme temperatures in this summer, with local authorities issuing health alerts and warning of a high risk of wildfires.

In Madrid, homeless people were bussed in from across the capital last week to take shelter in an air-conditioned centre with food, drinks and a washroom area.

Meanwhile in the upmarket holiday town of Marbella, a forest fire erupted on Monday after soaring temperatures were stoked by wind.

Around 100 firefighters and 14 aircraft have been roped in to tackle the blaze in the hills of Nagueles, close to Marbella’s exclusive Golden Mile neighbourhood, according to local media reports.

Parts of Malaga were also under a heat health alert on Monday.

Italy

Temperatures have finally dropped by a few degrees across Italy, to 38°C, over the weekend.

After being hit by a heatwave, 13 cities were placed under the most severe heat warning last Tuesday: Ancona, Bologna, Campobasso, Florence, Frosinone, Latina, Perugia, Pescara, Rieti, Rome, Trieste and Viterbo.

Palermo, the capital of Sicily, was added to the list on Thursday.

Further north, elderly people in the city of Verona were urged to stay indoors, while sprinklers were set up to cool passersby.

Greece

Greece has been experiencing its most severe wildfire risk in two decades, with some reservoirs hitting their lowest levels in 10 years.

All fire services are currently on high alert due to multiple nationwide incidents and prevailing weather conditions.

Since Monday morning, a wildfire broke out in the Sykamino area of Oropos, north of the capital Athens.

Flames across Greece have been spreading, despite the extensive efforts of both firefighters and volunteers, and are now reaching the border with neighbouring Bulgaria.

In the last six days, a blaze has continued to rage on Mount Falakro, outside the city of Darma.

The Acropolis – the biggest cultural attraction in Greece – was forced to shut from midday on Wedndesday for five hours because of the heat.

Turkey

Temperatures have finally dropped in parts of Turkey, hovering around 30°C.

No further major fires have been reported in the country over the weekend, but firefighters remain on alert.

Last week, they aided by more than a dozen water-dropping aircraft to bring a wildfire near the town of Bergama under control.

It came after the charred bodies of three people – a child, a woman and a man – were found in a burnt woodland in the western province of İzmir’s Çeşme district.

Despite temperatures decreasing, people – especially the elderly, children and pregnant women – are being told to stay inside between 10am and 4pm.

The advisory is in force until July 28, while the heat remains above he seasonal norms.

North Macedonia

There are seven active fires on the territory of North Macedonia despite all the help authorities have received from neighbouring countries.

Flames have been spreading in the Serta mountain and heading towards the Bregalnica river.

North Macedonia’s two army and three police helicopters and a helicopter sent by Montenegro have been helping to fight the fire. 

The country declared a state of crisis for 30 days a week ago and pleaded with its neighbours for firefighting helicopters.

Bulgaria

More than 270 fires have been extinguished in the last few days in Bulgaria, but flames continue to spread.

Entire villages and parts of towns were evacuated on Thursday. Dozens of houses burnt down in the village of Voden, where people were forced to run for their lives after authorities alerted them of the danger too late.

There are now fears that a fire in Greece will cross into Bulgaria because of the strong winds.

Flames have now reached within a kilometer of the Bulgarian border. Overnight, firefighters were stationed at the border to prevent the fire from crossing into the territory.

Albania

Wildfires in Albania appear to have finally been extinguished after three weeks.

Most were located in the south but flames had been making their way up to the country’s north. 

Greece had sent four planes to help fight wildfires in the Dropull municipality.

EU Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said on Thursday: ‘Wildfires know no borders.

‘The EU has mobilised firefighting airplanes from Greece to support the local first responders in Albania in their fight against the wildfires. We stand ready to further support Albania if needed.’

A 72-year-old man was also found dead at his farm 125 miles south of the capital Tirana. The cause of death is believed to be heat related, according to local media reports.

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This is the moment an Australian woman visiting Paris searched for help in a kebab shop after she was allegedly gang raped by five men.

The 25-year-old sought refuge at the Dounia kebab restaurant, near the Moulin rouge cabaret theatre on Saturday.

CCTV footage shows the moment the woman, who is blurred to retain her anonymity, is approached by a second woman who goes to give her some water while staff comfort her.

A man, whose face is also muzzed, then walks into the restaurant before the alleged victim gestures ‘that’s him’.

Those helping the woman confront the man, who then flees after he is punched by a diner.

After the alleged attack she had her ‘dress inside out’ and ‘disoriented and unable to speak a word of French’.

She was taken to Bichat hospital after the owners of the restaurant called for help.

The woman, who was in Paris for the Fete de la Musique music festival told officers she was attacked by five ‘young men of African appearance’, but was reportedly unable to give details on the exact circumstances.

The alleged assault happened just a day before the she was due to fly back home, according to 2GB’s Olympics reporter Clinton Maynard.

The Prosecutor’s Office said: ‘The investigation into the charge of gang rape likely to have been committed on the night of July 19 to 20 has been entrusted to the second judicial police district.’

Alliance Paris Police Union added investigators will ‘do everything to quickly identify the individuals and bring them to justice’.

In June a British woman was allegedly gang raped while attending the same festival.

She was taken to Cochin Hospital by firefighters and police are now investigating the circumstances around the attack.

On the same day, five teenage girls aged 13 to 17 were targeted at an event that was also part of Fete de la Musique.

The girls said they felt stinging in their arms while dancing and shortly after they started feeling dizzy and nauseous. They also had headaches and a fever, witnesses told Le Parisien.

Three of them had marks on their arms and two men who were stopped at the scene were later released by police

Paris has launched a major security operation ahead of the opening ceremony, with armed guards seen patrolling the streets.

Police want to avoid tourists being afraid as thousands flock to the French capital for the Olympics.

Around 45,000 police officers have been drafted in from 43 different countries, with UK sniffer dogs being sent to support the French authorities.

At least 18,000 soldiers will also make up the defence system.

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A 14-year-old boy has died in India after contracting Nipah virus – which has no known cure or vaccine to prevent it.

The Nipah virus originates from fruit bats and animals such as pigs, and can cause a lethal, brain-swelling fever. The teenager died after suffering from a cardiac arrest.

The incident happened in India’s southern state of Kerala, with officials now monitoring the potential spread of the virus.

At least 60 people have since been classed as ‘high risk’ after fears that they came into contact with the boy.

Nipah is classified as a priority pathogen by the World Health Organization (WHO) because of its potential to trigger an epidemic.

As it is a relatively new virus, there is still no vaccine to prevent the infection and no treatment to cure it.

‘The infected boy died on Sunday after a cardiac arrest,’ Veena George, the state health minister told local TV reporters, speaking in the Malayalam language.

In a statement on Saturday, she said the government has issued orders to set up 25 committees to identify and isolate affected people.

The state government said it is working to trace any affected people to contain the spread of the virus.

Nipah has been linked to the deaths of dozens of people in Kerala since its first appearance in the state in 2018.

Dr Anoop Kumar, director of critical care medicine at Aster MIMS Hospital in Calicut, stressed that the situation would be monitored for the next seven to 10 days.

He added: ‘There is a minimum chance of an outbreak of Nipah virus at this stage.’

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Tributes have been paid to 11-year-old girl from Ireland who plummeted to her death from a hotel balcony on the Spanish island of Mallorca.

Clodagh Phelan, from County Wicklow, south of Dublin, was on holiday with her family when she reportedly fell from the seventh floor of Club Mac, in Puerto de Alcudia.

Tributes have been paid to the child, who was described as ‘beautiful and spirited’ and a ‘great athlete’.

In a statement on Facebook, Parnell Athletics Club said they were ‘heartbroken to share the devastating news’ of the passing of one of their athletes.

‘Clodagh tragically passed away following an accident on holidays. Clodagh was a beautiful, spirited child and a great athlete who excelled in many sports, not just athletics,’ the statement read.

‘Her family Valerie, Liam, Will, and David and extended family are in our hearts, thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.

‘As a mark of respect and to allow us all time to grieve the loss of Clodagh, there will be no training until further notice.’

The incident happened at around 6.30am this morning, while her parents were sleeping.

Little Clodagh was found by another guest of the all-inclusive hotel shortly after.

Paramedics attempted to revive the girl, but nothing could be done and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

An autopsy is expected to take place later today.

A Civil Guard said: ‘We are investigating the death of an 11-year-old Irish girl who died after plunging from a seventh-floor terrace at a hotel in Alcudia.

‘The first emergency calls came in around 6.45 this morning.’

Earlier the force also stated: ‘(Her) parents were sleeping. A hosted person at the hotel reported the emergency at the morning when he found the body.’

The Department of Foreign Affairs said it is aware of the case and is providing consular assistance.

A 27-year-old British man was seriously injured in June after he fell from a balcony in Majorca’s capital, Palma, after reportedly taking drugs.

On July 10, a British man died after falling off a balcony in Laganas on the island of Zante in Greece.

The 23-year-old lost his balance while climbing on the balcony railings and fell 1.5m to ground ‘head-first’. He died in hospital.

Elsewhere on the island on the same day, another British tourist fell from the first-floor balcony of his hotel.

He was rushed to the same hospital in a serious condition.

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Holidaymakers have criticised TUI for leaving them stranded overseas after flights were axed following the Crowdstrike outage.

Europe’s biggest travel firm cancelled and delayed dozens of flights to and from the UK over the weekend and on Monday, after a massive IT issue wreaked havoc on airlines, banks and media organisations around the world.

The disruption has continued for days, as airlines try to recover from the chaos.

Passengers were left scrambling to find new flights for holiday hotspots such as Cancun in Mexico and Tenerife during one of the busiest weekends of the year for flights.

TUI grounded 64 flights to and from the UK on Friday, followed by more delays and cancellations on Saturday and Sunday, the Independent reports.

‘It’s put a dark cloud over our holiday’

Abbie Walker, from Paisley, Scotland, is on a holiday in Tenerife with her friend.

The pals were set to return to Manchester Airport from the Spanish island early on Monday morning on a TUI flight.

But they have now been forced to dish out around £600 on new flights and a hotel extension after TUI delayed their flight by at least 24 hours.

Abbie told Metro.co.uk: ‘I can’t believe what’s happened.

‘I was on the phone for an hour trying to get an update.

‘I’ve had a fantastic holiday but it’s put a dark cloud over it. I’ll never fly TUI again.’

The 23-year-old slammed the travel firm for a lack of communications, saying the ordeal has left her feeling ‘stranded’ and ‘abandoned.’

Abbie received an email from TUI on Sunday afternoon, saying the flight will not operate as scheduled, but that TUI could not confirm a new estimated departure time.

‘It’s the customer service aspect I’m disappointed with,’ she said.

When Abbie messaged TUI, they told her that her flight had landed in Manchester, although the flight was not listed on the arrivals.

‘I told them it has not landed, we have checked Flightradar. I’m confused and really worried not that we won’t get they money from TUI,’ she explained.

TUI’s website told customers who had booked their own hotel to keep receipts, saying it would ‘reimburse reasonable costs.’

What to do if your TUI flight has been affected?

TUI travel alert website said the firm has sent new flight information to impacted customers directly.

But it warned that some flights are now ‘split’ across different inbound flights.

The information is sent to the lead customer via text and email, and customers were told to ‘make sure to check which inbound flight you will be returning on.’

‘Transfer information will also be sent directly however those who have sourced their own accommodation will need to make their own way to the airport and will be able to reclaim this cost,’ TUI said.

Passengers can call TUI customer service on +4420 38 303 111.

If you have booked an alternative flight home with another airline, keep hold of the receipts and submit a claim here.

TUI added: ‘We absolutely understand this is not the end of your holiday that you would expect and sincerely apologise again for the impact this has had.’

But Abbie is concerned she and her friend may not receive any money if the flight appeared as landed, which would force her to dip into her savings to buy her own flat one day.

‘I had to borrow money to get home from my parents. It’s the last thing I want to do,’ she said.

‘I work full-time and have made sure I can afford things myself.’

She continued: ‘I understand it’s a worldwide issue but it’s more the lack of communications and miscommunications and unwillingness to help us that has irritated me more than anything.’

Abbie claimed the TUI rep at her hotel told her she ‘doesn’t understand what’s going on’.

TUI told Metro.co.uk that the unprecedented Microsoft IT issue that paralysed the world last week was ‘out of our control.’

It said: ‘We would like to apologise to our customers who were impacted by the global IT outage that resulted in some delays and cancellations.

‘Whilst the original IT issue was outside of our control the impact, alongside air traffic control restrictions over the weekend, meant we had to cancel some flights and delay some return flights home.

‘We understand how frustrating this would have been and recognise that many of these delays happened when our customers were already at the airport.

‘We would like to reassure customers that if they are currently overseas our TUI team will look after them and flights home provided. We will continue to update customers with more information and can confirm that if a return flight time has changed we will contact them directly 24 hours before departure.’

British Airways and EasyJet also cancelled dozens of flights on Sunday, while some flights at London Heathrow and Gatwick were affected.

EasyJet said some flights could not operate due to ‘impact of weather and capacity related ATC restrictions imposed across Europe yesterday, 20 July, which led to delays and some cancellations, and as a result a knock-on impact which led to aircraft being positioned out of base.’

Meanwhile in Greece, holidaymakers have been stranded inside Corfu Airport for more than 50 hours amid ongoing CrowdStrike disruption.

Brits holidaying on the Greek island said they were desperate to get back home after waiting in the airport for more than two days.

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